information for practice

One in seven people go to bed hungry every day. That’s 854 million people worldwide. Hunger is one of the world’s major problems and therefore one of its most important challenges. People who are forced to live from hand to mouth are denied a life of dignity. The 2007 Global Hunger Index illustrates that this problem has assumed an alarming scale in 36 countries: twenty-five of these countries are in Sub-Saharan Africa, nine in Asia, on in the Middle East and Latin America respectively. There is some progress in the fight against hunger in specific regions throughout the world, and the Millennium Development Goal agreed upon by 189 heads of state in 2000 to halve worldwide hunger by 2015 could be achieved. In fact, if the current trend continues, there will still be around 580 million people going hungry in 2015 – a situation we won’t accept. Without public pressure little can be done to alleviate worldwide hunger. There is no shortage of know-how, but there is a lack of political will. The Global Hunger Index (GHI), developed by IFPRI and made public last year for the first time, is an ideal tool to record hunger and support lobby work and advocacy on both national and international platforms.